Friday, October 16

The Leaving Room: Stories We Carry (My Favorite) Grades: 6-12 Theme: Everyone carries stories that shape who they become. Amber's Role: Amber opens the session by sharing the inspiration behind The Leaving Room, discussing how authors transform difficult experiences into stories that offer hope, connection, and understanding. She reads selected passages and talks about the power of telling our stories.

Inspired by: The Getaway, The Legendary Alston Boys, Ruin Road, and Lamar Giles's unforgettable antagonists Program Concept What makes a villain unforgettable? It is not simply being evil. Great villains believe they are the hero of their own story. Join Lamar Giles as students explore how complex characters create the most exciting conflicts.

Featuring: Mike Lowery and Chris Harris What Mike and Chris Might Do Chris Harris creates ridiculous poetry prompts while Mike has only sixty seconds to illustrate them. Examples include: A pirate afraid of water A chicken running for president A dragon that sneezes glitter A pencil that wants to be famous Then Mike turns the tables and quickly sketches bizarre characters that Chris must instantly build into funny poems. Student Activity Students work in pairs.

Inspired by: A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation Program Concept Every family road trip becomes legendary because of the stories you collect along the way. Join Pablo Cartaya as the audience builds one unforgettable adventure filled with strange roadside attractions, unexpected detours, hilarious disasters, and surprising heroes.

Inspired by: The Nine Moons of Han Yu and Luli What Karina Might Do Karina introduces Han Yu and Luli and explains that every great adventure is made up of choices. She shares moments from the novel where a single decision changes everything for the characters and talks about how authors build suspense by asking, "What would happen if...?" Student Activity Throughout the presentation, Karina pauses at several pivotal moments and asks students to vote on what they th…

Featuring Philip and Erin Stead Inspired by: A Sick Day for Amos McGee, Bear Has a Story to Tell, The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine, The Curious Word of Margaret Wise Brown, The Velveteen Rabbit, and other works Program Concept Some of the most important moments in a story aren't the loud ones. Sometimes they're found in silence, in waiting, in noticing, and in the space between one page and the next.

Inspired by A Potion, A Powder, A Little Bit of Magic Recommended Audience: Grades 3-6 Program Concept Not every author begins with a detailed outline. Philip Stead shares the surprising, stream-ofconsciousness writing process behind A Potion, A Powder, A Little Bit of Magic, showing students how curiosity, imagination, and unexpected ideas can lead to unforgettable stories.

Inspired by Damsel Recommended Audience: Grades 9-12 Program Concept Fairy tales have shaped our ideas about heroes, villains, monsters, and happily-ever-afters for centuries. In this thought-provoking session, Elana explores why she chose to reimagine a classic fairy tale in Damsel and how authors use familiar stories to challenge expectations, explore complex themes, and give voice to characters whose stories have often gone untold.

Friday morning only at Speech, Hearing, and Learning Services (SHLS). Christina Shawn will conduct the VCBF special-needs sessions there. No additional program description has been provided yet.

Inspired by: The Vanderbeekers books What Karina Might Do Karina introduces one of the kinds of problems the Vanderbeekers love solving: helping a lonely neighbor, saving a local business, bringing people together, or fixing a misunderstanding. She talks about how authors build suspense by asking, "What if our community had a problem no one else could solve?" Student Activity Each table receives a sealed envelope containing a fictional neighborhood crisis.

Inspired by: A Hero's Guide to Summer Vacation, Marcus Vega Doesn't Speak Spanish, The Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora, and Pablo Cartaya's writing process Program Concept Every novel is the result of thousands of choices. Should a character tell the truth or keep a secret? Should a story begin at the beginning-or in the middle? Should the ending offer answers or leave readers wondering?

Inspired by Everything Sad Is Untrue Recommended Audience: Grades 7-12 Program Concept Daniel explores the relationship between memory, truth, autobiography, and fiction while discussing how writers tell emotional truths even when memories are imperfect. What Daniel Might Do Share stories from his own childhood. Discuss writing memoir versus fiction. Explain why memory isn't always perfectly accurate.

Grades 5-12 Ask: "If your life had a museum, what five objects would tell your story?" Students draw or list objects such as: baseball glove seashell grandma's recipe ticket stub favorite stuffed animal Amber's Role: Amber discusses how writers use meaningful objects to tell powerful stories and reveal character without explaining every emotion directly.

Flash Fiction with Lamar Giles, Amber McBride, and Daniel Nayeri Session Length: 45 minutes Group Size: 30 students or fewer Program Concept Can you send a chill down someone's spine in exactly 100 words? Join Lamar Giles, Amber McBride, and Daniel Nayeri for a fast paced flash fiction workshop where students discover how to build suspense, create unforgettable characters, and leave readers wanting one more page.

Inspired by Holloway Recommended Audience: Grades 10-12 Program Concept How can two moments in history speak to one another? In Holloway, Elana connects the COVID-19 pandemic with post-World War II Europe, weaving together history, fantasy, and contemporary fiction to explore grief, resilience, and hope.

Friday morning only at Speech, Hearing, and Learning Services (SHLS). Christina Shawn will conduct the VCBF special-needs sessions there. No additional program description has been provided yet.

Grades: 6-12 Rather than focusing on themselves, students build fictional characters. Questions include: What does your character miss? What makes them laugh? What secret do they keep? Who believes in them? What helps them keep going? Amber's Role: Amber shares how she develops memorable characters by understanding their emotions, relationships, dreams, and struggles before writing a single page.

The Department of Ridiculous Ideas (could be with another author) Inspired by: I'm Just No Good at Rhyming Inspired by: I'm Just No Good at Rhyming Chris welcomes students into the "Department of Ridiculous Ideas," where every strange thought is celebrated. Through readings, storytelling, and live demonstrations, he reveals how many of his funniest poems began with a single silly question.

Inspired by: Lamar Giles's Star Wars: The High Republic Adventures, The Getaway, The Legendary Alston Boys, The Last Last-Day-of-Summer, and the stories that inspired him Program Concept Every author starts as a fan. Before they create worlds of their own, they spend years falling in love with books, comics, movies, games, and characters that spark their imagination.

Featuring: Malik-16 Program Concept What do Taylor Swift and William Shakespeare have in common? More than you might think. Across centuries, both have explored heartbreak, friendship, revenge, ambition, jealousy, forgiveness, and the complicated emotions that make us human. Join hip hop artist, educator, and Shakespeare expert Malik-16 as he connects the Bard to one of today's biggest storytellers through rhythm, poetry, performance, and lyrical analysis.

Inspired by: The Vanderbeekers books What Karina Might Do Karina introduces one of the kinds of problems the Vanderbeekers love solving: helping a lonely neighbor, saving a local business, bringing people together, or fixing a misunderstanding. She talks about how authors build suspense by asking, "What if our community had a problem no one else could solve?" Student Activity Each table receives a sealed envelope containing a fictional neighborhood crisis.

Featuring Philip and Erin Stead Inspired by: A Sick Day for Amos McGee, Bear Has a Story to Tell, The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine, The Curious Word of Margaret Wise Brown, The Velveteen Rabbit, and other works Program Concept Some of the most important moments in a story aren't the loud ones. Sometimes they're found in silence, in waiting, in noticing, and in the space between one page and the next.

Inspired by A Potion, A Powder, A Little Bit of Magic Recommended Audience: Grades 3-6 Program Concept Not every author begins with a detailed outline. Philip Stead shares the surprising, stream-ofconsciousness writing process behind A Potion, A Powder, A Little Bit of Magic, showing students how curiosity, imagination, and unexpected ideas can lead to unforgettable stories.

What do great athletes and great authors have in common? Discipline, creativity, and heart. Join awardwinning author Pablo Cartaya and the Longwood Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams for an energetic, one-of-a-kind session that combines storytelling and sports.

Inspired by Damsel Recommended Audience: Grades 9-12 Program Concept Fairy tales have shaped our ideas about heroes, villains, monsters, and happily-ever-afters for centuries. In this thought-provoking session, Elana explores why she chose to reimagine a classic fairy tale in Damsel and how authors use familiar stories to challenge expectations, explore complex themes, and give voice to characters whose stories have often gone untold.